Crock Pot Potato Bacon Soup

This recipe was our make-it-up-as-we-go-along dinner. It is also my first recipe post so bear with me.

I had a pile of produce I needed to do something with and my husband had a craving for soup.

We're huge fans of potato and garlic, so there's a lot of both in the soup. Since this is a slow cook soup, there's plenty of time to adjust ingredient quantities to taste.

This recipe makes A LOT of soup, it will fill a 5.5-quart crock pot but it was so yummy that even in that crazy amount, it's nearly already gone. Hope your family enjoys it as much as ours did.

Blue Ribbon Recipe

This loaded potato soup is guaranteed to warm you up on a cold night. The red potatoes add great flavoring and the seasoning is perfect. The mushrooms are an unusual addition, but we loved them. Just added to the layers of flavor. Bacon and cheese top this creamy and comforting soup perfectly! The Test Kitchen

How to Make Crock Pot Potato Bacon Soup

Using at least a 5.5-quart crock pot, set temperature to low. Combine chicken stock, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, potatoes, celery, and onion in the crock pot and stir until all ingredients are well integrated.

Let cook until potatoes are fork tender. (I let it go for a couple hours.)

In a separate dish combine milk and all 3 cans of soup and stir until well mixed.

Add mixed soup, mushrooms, and bacon to crock pot and stir gently but thoroughly. Let cook for another 20 - 30 minutes. Test broth for flavor and thickness. At this point, you can add more Italian seasoning, minced garlic, salt, and/or pepper to your taste. If the soup is too thick, add water in small increments until you have your desired consistency. If you prefer a thicker consistency, mix some cornstarch and milk then add to the soup.

Let cook for another 30 -60 minutes (to allow the flavor of the additional seasoning to develop), then serve. Garnish with cheddar cheese for a truly tasty loaded baked potato flavor.

After eating a couple bowlfuls, my hubby suggested that chicken and carrots would also be a nice addition to the soup. Please let me know if try that variation and how it worked out. :)